Chapter 7

Joy That I Return Has a Time Limit (07)

Chapter Seven

At dawn, the entire city was still asleep.

The horizon was draped with thin, gauzy clouds that seemed to scatter with a mere breeze. Slowly, the morning sun rose, the orange-red light like sparks igniting, instantly turning the clouds a clear rose color, bright and gorgeous.

Mu He woke leisurely, stretched, then remembered something and hurriedly threw off the covers to check. The sheets beneath her were clean, and she couldn’t help but exhale in relief.

When she returned from the company last night, she was surprised to find the sheets had already been changed. When she called Tan Mian, she was told it might have been the hourly worker the company hired. Xing Yu always treated artists well in daily life, so it wasn’t impossible.

But just thinking about that blood-stained sheet being seen by someone else…

Mu He buried her face in the covers in embarrassment and lingered in bed a while longer. She picked up her phone, swiped open the screen, and clicked into Weibo.

“Ten thousand people begging @Mu He to come out and work!”

“Your little origami crane is calling you to remove the weeds!”

“Hmph hmph hmph, no marriage, just teasing!”

“Stayed up all night just waiting to inhale some celestial aura to save my life. Ballballyou save me, please.”

“Strongly requesting a selfie for the million-follower welfare, like if you agree!”

[Likes] 13,639

Mu He paused, stunned. A million followers?

She opened her Weibo homepage—indeed, it had broken the one-million mark. It might be small compared to others, but for her, the fan count had grown twentyfold.

Her dark apricot eyes shimmered with joy, and the smile at her lips widened little by little, until she couldn’t help laughing out loud.

This feeling, perhaps, could only be understood by those who had walked alone in darkness, weary yet clear-headed, and were finally illuminated by a faint light.

She continued scrolling through Weibo, caught by an account called “Mu He National Fan Support Association.” It was a new account registered yesterday, following 1, with 2,098 followers, and only one post.

“#ThereIsAHeInYunLin, FloatingThroughTheWorld##OrigamiCraneHabitat# Our first post is dedicated to our goddess @Mu He [heart]”

Mu He scrolled through over a hundred comments, liking a few. Then she found a photo from her album—a white crane spreading its wings over a cerulean lake—and posted it on Weibo:

“Good morning, the selfie you asked for [picture]”

By the time she finished washing up and returned, the comments had surpassed two thousand.

“Ahhhhh, number one!”

“Good morning, miss!”

“Hahaha, I love that you’re beautiful and playful.”

“Hugging you is like a strong inhalation, ahhh I feel alive again!”

…

Mu He couldn’t bear to miss any fan comments. On the way to the company, she still held her phone. Upon reaching the small meeting room, if Tan Mian hadn’t reminded her about the upcoming meeting, she might have read every comment carefully.

They sat for a few minutes before Ye Xi also arrived. From the moment she entered, Mu He noticed Ye Xi’s gaze was different—probably because of the recent online buzz?

Sure enough, Ye Xi immediately mentioned Weibo. She was genuinely surprised and still couldn’t tell whether Mu He’s rising popularity was organic or driven by some unseen force.

Simply moving into Jinyue Bay suggested that matters weren’t entirely straightforward. But Mu He had indeed signed a rookie contract, and in recent days, Ye Xi had received no instructions to give her special attention.

Moreover, intuition told her that Mu He was not that type of woman.

Five years of experience in the industry weren’t enough for Ye Xi to fully discern the truth—she could only feel her way forward.

“Tan Mian, contact the fan club president.”

For a star, managing fans was also very important. Ye Xi planned to make the fan club a semi-official organization for easier management.

“Sure thing.”

As for Mu He’s Weibo, Ye Xi had originally thought to take over and manage it for her, but after careful consideration, she decided to leave it alone for now.

Ye Xi pushed the documents on the desk toward Mu He and outlined the meeting’s key point: “I got you an audition for a supporting female role. Take a look first.”

Mu He didn’t expect work to come so quickly. She opened the file: “Xianxia Romance?”

Ye Xi nodded: “Yes.”

It was a billion-investment, large-scale period fantasy drama, directed by the well-known director Xie Qinghua. The male lead was a skilled actor, Qi Hao. The double female leads were Dong Chen’s top actress Zhong Li Fei and popular actress Yuan Xin’er, a strong lineup with first-class production and publicity teams.

The show had been in preparation for two years, originally scheduled to start filming next month, but the original supporting actress injured her waist during an outdoor adventure program. The production had no choice but to recast.

The plot of Xianxia Romance centers on an emperor descending to the mortal world to undergo trials of love and forming entangled relationships with three women. The second female lead, Xi Yin, is the treasured daughter of the South Sea Dragon King, exquisitely beautiful and ethereal. After encountering the emperor, she unknowingly falls in love. Eventually, she steals the South Sea Pearl to save him, causing floods and destruction. For her crimes, she loses her dragonbone and falls into evil ways…

The complexity of the character demanded a high level of skill from the actress: beauty was the baseline, temperament was the hardest to capture—immortal at first, both demon and immortal mid-way, fully darkened later, and ultimately returning to purity.

Ye Xi thought Mu He’s image fit perfectly, and she had worked hard to secure the audition, though competition was fierce and hopes minimal.

“Xi Jie.”

Mu He finished reviewing the materials, looked up with reddened eyes but an inexplicable determination: “I want to play this role.”

Ye Xi stared at the clear light in her eyes, momentarily stunned: “…Okay.”

After a pause, she added, “Go for it, I believe in you.”

Tan Mian also clenched her fist to cheer: “Mu He, go go go!”

In another meeting room, Zhao Yike heard about Mu He auditioning for Xianxia Romance and snorted disdainfully: “Her? No popularity, no skill, an eighteenth-line beauty with nothing to offer. She thinks she deserves Director Xie’s project?”

Stop making others laugh so hard.

Lili chimed in: “She’s probably just an extra. Director Xie’s casting is strict; even investors have to respect him. Previously, someone tried to pull strings and was publicly scolded on Weibo, completely humiliated, and had to slink away.”

Hearing this, Zhao Yike became interested: “Lili, I want to audition too.”

To prove to those who only chase hype and buy fake fans what real acting and true talent is.

Extras are extras; leads are leads.

Zhao Yike had risen through youth idol dramas and hadn’t done supporting roles since. Though this is a second female lead, under a double female lead aura, she’s essentially third, but the role is appealing and could gain audience favor if performed well. Moreover, Director Xie’s works are widely praised, and training under him would only benefit future career transitions.

Luo Li agreed: “Okay, I’ll arrange it.”

Zhao Yike lightly brushed the diamonds on her nails, a victorious smile on her face.

The Xianxia Romance audition would be the day after tomorrow. With nothing planned for the afternoon, Ye Xi gave Mu He the afternoon off to prepare.

Thinking her home was still empty, with nothing to eat, Mu He decided to go to the supermarket.

She left the company, frowning at her long shopping list. Tan Mian was small and delicate, probably not as strong as her, and she didn’t want to trouble her.

But Mu He quickly came up with an idea.

The sky was high and clear, the autumn breeze gentle—the perfect time to call an old friend for help, or rather, to catch up.

Mu He found the number in her contacts and dialed: “Xi Heng, are you free this afternoon?”

After hearing the response, she stood in the golden sun, smiling like a mischievous little fox: “Good, I’ll wait for you.”

Half an hour later, Mu He arrived at a downtown supermarket, heading straight to the household section. After she selected salt, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and other condiments, Huo Heng appeared.

He was always the most eye-catching presence in any crowd. Even with few people at this hour, he stood out.

Mu He’s eyes followed his tall, straight figure approaching. She remembered what the British psychologist Dr. George Fieldman had said: “Mixed-race faces reduce asymmetry and differences, making them more attractive.”

Over the years, as a Sino-Russian mix, with this impossibly handsome face, he must have driven countless women crazy.

Mu He indulged briefly in his beauty. When he reached her, she nonchalantly handed over the shopping cart: “You have a lot to buy.”

She turned her head and smiled: “Good thing you’re here.”

Huo Heng didn’t say anything, his clear gaze fixed on her slender back, the corners of his lips curling into a faint, almost imperceptible smile, silently pushing the cart to follow her.

Mu He picked a white bowl with blue patterns from the shelf and turned to ask him, “Is it nice?”

It was Huo Heng’s first time coming to a mundane place like a supermarket, let alone giving an opinion on “whether a bowl looks good.” Fortunately, Mu He wasn’t obsessive about choices; after a brief moment of hesitation, she made her decision.

She didn’t choose a full set of tableware. First, a household set would have too many pieces for her; second, she feared defects.

She carefully picked six bowls. In less than three minutes, plates and spoons from the same series also went into the cart.

After choosing the tableware, Huo Heng accompanied her to select tea sets.

Not far away, Zhang Chang and his twin brother Zhang Gong stood behind a shelf. Zhang Gong watched the surroundings expressionlessly, while Zhang Chang looked at the two speaking softly. He gave Zhang Gong a meaningful glance: “Bro, if we hadn’t seen it ourselves, would you believe it? That’s Huo Shao?”

He briefly recounted the night Huo Shao helped Mu He polish her boots, then carried her back to her room after meeting her at the clubhouse, even having him delete the surveillance footage to protect her identity: “Honestly, even witnessing it in person, it still feels surreal.”

And then, that luxurious riverside apartment at Jinyue Bay—Huo Shao had been living there all along. A man so cautious and privacy-conscious, yet he allowed a woman into his private space.

Zhang Gong was far calmer, crossing his arms and sneering: “If I hadn’t seen it myself, would you believe Huo Shao would go grocery shopping with a woman?”

Zhang Chang: “……”

Though they didn’t know the relationship between the two, in the current scene, it looked unmistakably like a couple shopping together—perhaps newlyweds would be more accurate?

After all, even their bedroom matters had come out…

Zhang Gong cast a cold glance: “Less gossiping, more work.”

Zhang Chang zipped his lips.

However, when he saw Mu He make Huo Heng lift a fifty-kilogram bag of Thai jasmine rice, his eye twitched uncontrollably.

Stop…

Miss, do you know who this man is that you’re ordering around like a subordinate?

!

How could you let his hands—used to commanding with ease, privileged and refined—do such heavy labor?

!

Zhang Chang watched with wide eyes as Huo Heng finished moving the rice and then went on to carry peanut oil…

He turned away, unable to watch further.

Mu He had no idea that every action between her and Huo Heng had been observed by the two brothers. After finishing the shopping and paying, they left the supermarket and returned to Jinyue Bay.

Along the way, they stopped by a pet store to pick up her cat.

The cat, named Wan Wan, a white short-haired feline, had been raised by Mu He for over a year. Timid and fragile, it had recently fallen ill and had to stay at the pet shop temporarily.

Arriving in a strange, new environment made it extremely uneasy. No matter how Mu He coaxed it, it refused to come out of the cage.

Mu He had no choice but to give up, went to the kitchen to wash her hands, and poured a cup of warm water for Huo Heng.

She carried the cup out, seeing Huo Heng sitting on the sofa, holding his phone, chin slightly raised, his gaze… fixed on the router on the wall.

Did she really need any more explanations?

“The Wi-Fi password is xhhdam…” followed by a long string of numbers.

Mu He placed the cup on the table and sat beside him, taking his phone: “The password is too complicated. I’ll enter it.”

Opening the settings, she was surprised to find that Huo Heng’s phone had already automatically connected to her home Wi-Fi.

Mu He: “…?”